Teacher Hiring: Exploring the Dilemmas and the Solutions

Abstract

This paper reports on three related pieces of research and academic writing. Initially, mixed methods research was undertaken to ascertain the views of school administrators regarding criteria, which they value in the process of hiring new teachers. One overarching conclusion from this research is that administrators who have responsibility for hiring new teachers are not universally confident in the interview process as a strategy for helping them to identify the best teachers to hire. This research is then framed in the context of two academic books which each has a related premise. The first book is addressed to new teachers to help them understand how to prepare for, manage, and reflect upon a teaching interview. The second book is addressed to school and system administrators to suggest an alternative multi-stage process that could strengthen current hiring practices to help jurisdictions ensure that the best teachers are ultimately hired to teach.